Gen. Dan Caine, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will give the commencement address at the Naval Academy on Friday instead of President Donald Trump, who spoke at the Coast Guard Academy graduation ceremony earlier this week.
Traditionally, the Naval Academy informally cycles through four speakers in rotation — the Navy secretary, the secretary of war, the vice president, and the president. Trump was in line to speak at the graduation following Vice President JD Vance, who spoke at last year’s commencement. Former President Joe Biden spoke at the Naval Academy in 2022.
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“Speaker participation at U.S. service academy graduation and commissioning ceremonies has traditionally included senior national leaders such as the United States President, Vice President, Secretary of War, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff,” said Ashley Hockycko, public affairs officer at the academy, in a statement, according to the Baltimore Banner.
She continued, “While they generally rotate among the academies, these arrangements are not fixed and are routinely adjusted based on official schedules, operational requirements, and availability.”
The other service academies do the same rotation, swapping out the Navy secretary for the respective service secretary. The rotation is not codified by law, but is a long-standing tradition.
The Trump administration has not publicly explained why Caine is replacing Trump as the commencement speaker.
Caine, a career F-16 pilot, is the 22nd chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, making him the country’s highest-ranking military officer and the top military adviser to the president, the secretary of war, and the National Security Council.
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The ceremony will be at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
West Point’s graduation is this Saturday, and the commencement speaker has not yet been announced. Trump spoke at last year’s West Point graduation.
